System and method for managing and controlling a robot competition

ABSTRACT

A system and method for operating robots in a robot competition. One embodiment of the system may include operator interfaces, where each operator interface is operable to control movement of a respective robot. A respective operator interface may be in communication with an associated operator radio, where each radio may have a low power RF output signal. A robot controller may be coupled to each robot in the robot competition. A robot radio may be coupled to a respective robot and in communication with a respective robot controller and operator radio. The robot radios may have a low power RF output signal while communicating with the respective operator radios. Alternatively, the radios may be short range radios, where a distance of communication may be a maximum of approximately 500 feet.

RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority from co-pending U.S. Provisional PatentApplication No. 60/238,354, filed Oct. 6, 2001, which is incorporatedherein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Technical Field of the Invention

The principles of the present invention generally relate to robotcompetitions, and more specifically, but not by way of limitation, to asystem and method for managing, controlling, and providing safety forrobot competitions.

2. Description of Related Art

Robot competitions have become popular in the recent past. The robotcompetitions are used as incentive to motivate people of all ages tobecome interested in math, science, and engineering; robot design anddevelopment; and used as entertainment events. One popular robotcompetition is organized for high school students and sponsored by largecorporations. In these robot competitions, contestants of the robotcompetitions are asked to create robots to perform a wide range oftasks, such as picking up tennis balls, stacking blocks of wood, andeverything in-between. Other popular robot competitions have beenorganized and conducted by people with robots built as a hobby toperform more advanced activities. Still yet, more robot competitionshave been organized by for-profit promoters, and match contestantsagainst one another to design large, dangerous robots that clash in anarena for a fight, such as a boxing or wrestling match.

Robot competitions are generally concerned with four issues: (i) eventsafety, (ii) event integrity, (iii) event flow, and (iv) event control.These four issues are important from liability, learning, and revenuegenerated standpoints.

Event safety is an extremely important issue for robot competitions.Depending upon the robot competition, the robots may range in size fromounces to hundreds of pounds, and may reach speeds of up to 30 miles perhour or more in relatively short distances. Additionally, the largerrobots may include weapons, such as gripping devices, hammers, rotatingarms, and saws to be utilized during the robot competitions. Robotshaving such devices may be extremely dangerous for the contestants,organizers, and spectators of the robot competitions if an uncontrolledsituation occurs.

While the size, strength, and capabilities of the robots may in and ofthemselves be dangerous, the event safety issue is exponentiallyincreased due to tens or several hundreds of robots being entered in anyrobot competition. And, as contestants prepare and test the robots priorto entering the arena for an event, the contestants routinely losecontrol of their robots due to a robot malfunction, radio controlinterference, or human error.

With regard to radio interference, robot competitions have beenconducted traditionally in two ways, (i) allowing contestants to utilizemixed, non-uniform radio equipment, and (ii) requiring contestants toutilize consistent radio equipment. In the case of contestants utilizingmixed radio equipment, contestants generally have adapted model airplaneradio controllers for the robots because these radio controllers havemore capability and frequency channels than radio controllers for remotecontrol cars, for example. However, because the model airplane radiocontrollers transmit at high power levels, two watts or more, ingeneral, these radio controllers are problematic for robot competitionsdue to, for example, radio frequency (RF) noise, electromagneticinterference (EMI), co-channel interference, and multipath effects dueto being in an indoor environment. These radio control problems maycause unexpected effects, such as a contestant controlling a robot of adifferent contestant or a robot performing mysterious actions. Also, theuse of mixed radio equipment often results in two or more contestantsoperating on or near the same frequency, which will likely cause acontestant to unknowingly drive a robot of another contestant, therebycreating a dangerous situation for the contestants, organizers,spectators, and robots.

With regard to event integrity, an organizer of the robot competition isconcerned about conducting a fair and honest competition. In thetraditional robot competitions, contestants utilizing both the mixed andconsistent radio equipment have no absolute regulation to prevent earlystarts, late starts, or late stops of the robots. For activity-typecompetitions, a contestant may cheat and start or continue the activityprior to or after a clock starts and stops, respectively. In afight-type competition, a contestant may strike an opposing robot priorto or after the clock starts and stops, respectively. If such an earlyor late strike occurs, the opposing robot may suffer irreparable damage,and the contest may be jeopardized, thereby destroying the integrity ofthe event as the contest cannot be replayed.

With regard to event flow, as radio controllers are essentiallyunregulated, including operating on the same frequencies and having highpower transmitters, robot competition organizers are required toconfiscate radio controllers from the contestants to minimize safetyhazards. The organizers often utilize as many as fifteen people toconfiscate and guard the radio controllers in a storage room. In thecase of non-consistent radio equipment, organizers have instituteddifferent techniques, including both low budget and elaboratetechniques, to assign frequency channels to contestants. Thesetechniques range from (i) attaching a number to a clothes pin to be usedfor checking out the radio controller for a match, (ii) utilizing asoftware program specifically written to ensure that two contestants donot operate on the same or close frequency simultaneously, and (iii)utilizing a spectrum analyzer to monitor frequency channel usage. Evenusing these techniques to avoid having two radios operating on the samefrequency, mistakes have routinely been made and safety has beenjeopardized. It is common to find a contestant's radio to betransmitting on a different frequency than expected. Some common causesare human error, intentional misuse, mislabeled crystals, poor or oldequipment, and lack of knowledge of the equipment by the contestant.Also, contestants routinely have additional radio controllers that are“backups” that are not confiscated and pose a safety hazard.

In the case of using consistent radio equipment, such as havingtransmitters operating on frequency channels A, B, C, and D, confusionand accidents routinely occur as contestants have trouble withinstallation of the radio equipment, forget to return the radioequipment, or simply use their own radio equipment. And, installingradio equipment into the robot electronics for the first time mayproduce unexpected results or no results at all. Pragmatically,contestants want to perform last minute testing of the robots prior toentering the robot competition. Without having a radio controllerbecause the organizers only have enough for competition purposes, such atest is not possible. Furthermore, as the robots may weigh severalhundred pounds or more and be tract driven, the contestants may needradio control to move the robot between different staging areas, and toload and unload the robot from the arena. Furthermore, issues resultingfrom poor control of match starts and stops, as mentioned previously,leads to re-match requests by contestants for the reason of fairness.Re-matches cause havoc for schedules, adding complexity and confusion toevent flow. Logistical problems associated with the event flow issueoften cause delay before, during, and after a match, and alter smoothflow of the overall robot competition.

With regard to the event control issue, organizers of the robotcompetition are interested in controlling frequency usage and regulatingstart and stop times of the robots for safety, event integrity, andevent flow considerations. However, traditional robot competitions havebeen unsuccessful in implementing a viable solution to handle the eventcontrol issue. While the coordinators have tried to regulate and assignfrequency channels, problems still occur. Organizers are subjected torely on unregulated equipment and a contestant honor system. Datarejection via a checksum or robot identifier signal to be verified bythe robots is an idea that simply has not been instituted. Also,contestants tend to start and stop a match early and late to gain acompetitive advantage and frequency channels are routinely crossed dueto a mix-up of issuing radio controllers by the organizers of the robotcompetitions.

The above issues provide just a sampling of the problems that organizersand contestants of robot competitions have faced. Other issues that theorganizers face are Federal Communication Commission. (FCC) control forthe radio frequency and RF power usage, governmental oversight of safetyissues, and television networks desiring more streamlined competitionfor production purposes. With the popularity of the robot competitionsbecoming increasing larger, these issues need to be solved.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

To solve the problematic issues of robot competitions, including (i)event safety, (ii) event integrity, (iii) event flow, and (iv) eventcontrol, a system and method has been designed to manage and controlrobot competitions. The principles of the present invention may includecomponents that can be divided into two basic categories, componentsused by the contestants, and components used by the event organizers.The various contestant and organizer components have been seamlesslyintegrated into a complete wireless robot control system. The wirelessrobot control system may be used by robot designers and contestants ofthe robot competition to pilot and control the robot(s). The wirelessrobot control system also provides a simple method of ensuring that theequipment includes safety features according to the principles of thepresent invention and may be easily identified as having the safetyfeatures by the event organizers simply by recognizing the equipmentbrand. The components used by the event organizers form a competitioncontrol system and ensure event safety and integrity to manage eventflow and to provide control over the equipment of the contestants asneeded to safely conduct the competition. The system may provide for afield controller, arena controller, operator interface, and robotcontroller to be utilized to ensure for event safety, integrity, flowand control of a robot competition. By utilizing the system and method,event organizers can focus more on the goals of the competition, whetherfor educational or entertainment purposes, and spend less time oncommunication and competition issues.

The principles of the present invention include a system and method foroperating robots in a robot competition. One embodiment of the systemmay include operator interfaces, where each operator interface isoperable to control movement of a respective robot. A respectiveoperator interface may be in communication with an associated operatorradio, where each radio may have a low power RF output signal. A robotcontroller may be coupled to each robot in the robot competition. Arobot radio may be coupled to a respective robot and in communicationwith a respective robot controller and operator radio. The robot radiosmay have a low power RF output signal while communicating with therespective operator radios. Alternatively, the radios may be short rangeradios, where a distance of communication may be a maximum ofapproximately 500 feet.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A more complete understanding of the method and apparatus of the presentinvention may be obtained by reference to the following DetailedDescription when taken in conjunction with the accompanying Drawingswherein:

FIG. 1 is an exemplary diagram of a robot competition including a fieldwith contestants and robots;

FIG. 2 is an exemplary flow diagram flow for conducting the robotcompetition conducted on the field of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an exemplary block diagram of components of a system forcontrolling the robot competition conducted on the field of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an more detailed block diagram of the components of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is an exemplary mechanical schematic of an operator interface ofFIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is an exemplary mechanical schematic of a robot controller ofFIG. 4;

FIG. 7 is an exemplary interaction diagram of the control system of FIG.4 showing an exemplary flow for radio startup;

FIG. 8 is an exemplary interaction diagram of the control system of FIG.4 showing an exemplary flow for tether startup;

FIG. 9 is an exemplary interaction diagram of the control system of FIG.4 showing a flow of operations for conducting normal operation of thecontrol system;

FIG. 10 is an exemplary display for providing a contestant of the robotcompetition information being fed back from the robot to the contest;

FIGS. 11A and 11B are exemplary data downlink and uplink data streams,respectively, for communicating information between the operatorinterfaces and robots of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 12 is an exemplary flow diagram describing a method for conductingthe robot competition of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention will now be described more fully hereinafter withreference to the accompanying drawings, in which preferred embodimentsof the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied inmany different forms and should not be construed as limited to theembodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided sothat this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fullyconvey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art.

Robot competitions have become increasingly popular in the recent past.The robot competitions include high school students, who compete tocreate robots to perform an activity, such as picking up tennis ballsand placing the tennis balls in a bucket, and robot enthusiasts whocreate large, dangerous robots that compete on a field within an arenain a fight. These robot competitions may include thirty contestants forlocal competitions and as many as 500 robots, thousands of contestants,and tens of thousands of spectators for a national competition.

There are generally four issues of concern for organizers of the robotcompetitions, including: (i) event safety, (ii) event integrity, (iii)event flow, and (iv) event control. The organizers have addressed theseissues in a variety of ways, but ultimately a system is needed toproperly address and handle these issues. The system and methodologydescribed herein address these and other issues.

The system, according to the principles of the present invention, mayinclude a field controller, arena controller(s), operator interfaces,and robot controllers. The field controller may be utilized by theorganizers to perform field management of the robots participating onand off the field of the arena. At least one arena controller maycommunicate with the field controller to assist in executing the fieldmanagement. For example, the field controller may be utilized by theorganizer of the robot competition to enable and disable the robots tostart and stop a match. The operator interfaces may be coupled to thearena controller(s) and be utilized to control and monitor the robots bythe contestants of the robot competition. The operator interfacescommunicate with the robot controllers via radios being of essentiallythe same type and having low radio frequency (RF) power output,generally below approximately 0.25 watts, to reduce interference betweenrobots. The radios may also be identified as having a shortcommunication range, such as approximately 500 feet. Additionally, eachoperator interface may be assigned a frequency channel on which tocommunicate to a respective robot during the competition.

To address safety issues, the robot controller, and applicable softwareand/or hardware as understood in the art, may control the radio coupledthereto to sweep through the competition frequencies, which arerestricted otherwise, until a positive determination is made to identifycontrol data, such as checksum, team number, and frequency channelnumber. By identifying the control data, organizers may ensure that eachrobot operates on a separate frequency in response to a correspondingoperator interface. And, once a robot controller is assigned the correctfrequency channel number, it may lock to that frequency until poweredoff.

To allow for contestants to test the robots in a staging area or pit 124area prior to competing, the robot controller may include an input portfor a tether cable from an operator interface. The operator interfacemay be the same as the operator interface typically utilized to controlthe robot or another operator interface with reduced capabilities. Also,the tether input port may be the same as the input port for the radiocoupled to the robot. By utilizing a tether, in the staging, RF noiseand potential safety hazards are reduced.

Because the system for operating the robot competition addresses thefour issues of concern for the organizers, robot competitions may besafely and smoothly conducted. And, because the organizers can sellconsistent equipment to the contestants prior to the robot competition,the contestants may simply design the robot controllers into the robotand concern themselves with the mechanics of the robot design ratherthan communication issues. Utilizing the system, the organizers mayavoid scrutiny from government agencies, such as the FCC, as the radiosof the system meet FCC regulations and the system provides a high levelof safety to protect contestants and others attending the robotcompetition.

FIG. 1 is an exemplary diagram of an arena 100 for conducting a robotcompetition. The arena 100 generally includes at least one field 102 andstage or table 104 for organizers to oversee the field 102. Playerstations 106 a-106 d may be located around the perimeter of the field102 to allow contestants to reside during a match of the robotcompetition.

A competition control system, according to the principles of the presentinvention, includes a number of components to conduct and control therobot competition. The components may include a field controller (FC)108 coupled to arena controllers (AC1-AC4) 110 a-110 d (collectively110) via cables 112 a-112 d (collectively 112), respectively. Operatorinterfaces (OI1-OI4) 114 a-114 d (collectively 114) may be furthercoupled to respective arena controllers 110. Operator radios 115 a-115 d(collectively 115), coupled to respective operator interfaces 114, maybe utilized to communicate information between the operator interfaces114 and associated robots 116 a-116 d (collectively 116). The operatorradio 115 a may be either external or part of the operator interface 114a. Each of the robots 116 includes a robot controller 118 a-118 d(collectively 118) coupled to robot radios 119 a-119 d (collectively119). The robot radio 119 may be either external or part of the robotcontroller 118.

To avoid having radio interference or fading when a robot 116 aassociated with an operator interface 114 a is positioned across thefield 102 and closer to a different operator interface 114 d, acentralized radio and/or antenna grouping 120 may be utilized tocommunicate between the operator interfaces 114 and robot controllers118. A pits area 124 is utilized by event organizers to provide a commonarea for robots and contestants not presently competing, and may beutilized by contestants to test, repair, and prepare the robots betweenmatches. A staging area 122 is utilized by organizers to assist in eventflow by collecting or “staging” robots and contestants prior to a match,and is utilized by contestants to test and prepare the robots prior to amatch.

FIG. 2 is an exemplary flow diagram 200 for conducting a robotcompetition utilizing the arena 100 of FIG. 1. While the flow diagram200 is general in nature, given that tens or hundreds of robots may becompeting in a single robot competition, event flow, which includessafely and timely moving robots onto and off-of the field 102, isimportant for organizers, contestants, and spectators of the robotcompetition. By improving flow of a robot competition, more events maybe conducted and more robots can compete, which ultimately increasesspectator interest and reduces expensive schedule time if filming crewsare present. A comparison between traditional robot competitions androbot competitions utilizing the control system according to theprinciples of the present invention are described with regard to FIG. 2.

The process starts at step 202. At step 204, the organizers conduct apre-competition checkin to register the contestants and robots into therobot competition. To ensure safety, robots may not communicate on thesame frequency at the same time, during matches and pre-matchpreparation. In a traditional robot competition, if the contestants usedinconsistent, commercially available radio control equipment, such asmodel airplane radio controllers, every contestant was assigned adifferent frequency channel. If, however, different frequency channelsfor all of the robots could not be procured, a radio checkin/checkoutprocedure was utilized, which limited the contestants from performingadequate pre-match testing in the pits 124. In the case of using customcontrol equipment provided by at least one organizer of robotcompetitions, all radios, which included high power radios, wereconfiscated at checkin or a special dongle (i.e., jumper setting cable)was installed to each robot entering and exiting the field. The instantcontrol system allows contestants to simply register without having torelinquish the operator interface 114 (i.e., radio controller) becausethe radio controllers are low RF power, competition channels areprotected and accessible via arena controllers 110, and practicechannels are available, for example. Additionally, organizerintervention is greatly reduced as the control system coordinates thefrequency channels and data rejection, utilizing, for example, frequencychannel number, team number, and checksum, during communication betweenthe operator interfaces 114 and the robot controllers 118. It should beunderstood that the frequency channel number may simply be a channelnumber as various communication techniques, such as code divisionmultiplexing, do not utilize frequency per se. Also, the channel numbermay include a time slot number for a time division multiplexingcommunication technique.

At step 206, contestants to partake in an upcoming event are staged inthe staging area 122 to ensure that the contestants and robots 116 areprepared for the event. In the traditional robot competitions,contestants using commercial equipment organizers had to verify thatcontestants in the staging area 122 were communicating on differentfrequency channels from those competing, loading, unloading, and in thestaging area 122 or request that radio controllers remain powered off Inthe case of contestants using custom control equipment of the organizerof robot competitions, contestants could not use the radios in the pits124 due to the limited number of frequency channels and the high powertransmission would interfere with others in the pits 124 and field 102.While the custom control equipment had tether capabilities, AC poweroutlets had to be available, which was generally not the case. Theinstant control system provides “open” or test channels and may includea tether connection capable of receiving power from the robot. If theradio link is used, the low power transmission does not substantiallyinterfere with the robots competing. Because competing robots are onfrequencies unavailable to contestants not on the field, same frequencyinterference should not occur.

At step 208, radio communication is typically used to ensure that therobots 116 are ready to compete. In the traditional robot competitionswith contestants using commercial equipment, the organizers had toverify that contestants loading were on different frequency channelsfrom those unloading, competing, and staging. Organizers had no controlover unsafe actions. For the custom control equipment robotcompetitions, contestants had to wait for those unloading before loadingdue to a limited number of frequency channels and high radio power. Inthe instant control system, contestants loading the robots 116may powerthe robots 116 as the robots 116 may be automatically assigned differentfrequency channels. Additionally, the organizers may disable robotmovement globally within the arena to reduce setup time or individuallyto halt unsafe operating conditions.

Once a contestant situates the robot 116 a on the field 102 , using theinstant control system, the robot 116 a is powered on and the robotcontroller 118 searches available frequency channels for a preassignedteam number. The operator interface 114 a may be connected to the arenacontroller 110 a at the player station 106 a. The arena controller 110 aprovides the operator interface 114 a with power, communicates apassword to the operator interface 114 a thereby allowing access tocompetition-only channels, commands the proper channel to use to theoperator interface 114 a, and communicates a signal to disable movementof the robot 116 a.

Once the operator interface 114 a and robot controller 118 a haveestablished communication, the operator interface 114 a indicates that agood link exists. Field coordinators check that each robot has a goodlink before starting the match. In one embodiment, the operatorinterfaces 114 and arena controllers 110 may indicate that a good linkhas been established by turning on lights.

Further at step 208, a pre-competition checkout is performed, typicallyby an organizer asking, “Are the robot ready?” and “Are the contestantsready?” As robot competitions typically have a specific starting areafor the robots prior to the start of a match, time is lost whencontestants test the robots 116 and move out of the areas. The robots116 must be moved back within the areas manually or remotely, which maybe dangerous to anyone on the field 102. In the case of using commercialradio controllers, determining if the robots 116 are ready requirestesting the control system by moving the robots 116, robot arms and/orweapons, which may be dangerous to anyone on the field 102. Clearing thefield 102 first causes delay. Since radio equipment remains on, as theradios cannot be turned off, the contestants are confident that theirequipment is ready. In the case of using custom control equipment,determining if the robots 116 are ready requires testing the controlsystem and moving the robots 116, robot arms and/or weapons, which,again, is dangerous to anyone on the field. Again, clearing the field102 first causes delay. Once the system is tested, the operators systemis powered off by the competition coordinators to prevent contestantsfrom moving prior to the start of the match. Because the system ispowered off, the coordinators and contestants cannot be certain that thesystem will come back on properly and timely. Additionally, the robotradios 119 remain listening to the frequency channels and aresusceptible to noise and adjacent channel reception as no data rejectionexists in the system. With regard to the instant control system,determining if the robots are ready requires checking for communicationbetween the operator interfaces 110 and the robot controllers 118. Thecommunication check may be performed without verbal communication orhand signals, as performed in the past. Since the radios 115 and 119remain on with robot movement disabled, the contestants are confidentthat the equipment is ready.

Furthermore, the robots 116 remain in place as a control system check bymoving the robots 116 and/or the components on the robots isunnecessary, thereby providing additional safety to anyone on the field102.

At step 210, a match of the robot competition is performed. Thebeginning of the match is important in robot competitions, specificallywhen collecting points is involved. The robots should start and stop atprecisely the same time. Stopping the match may be even more importantfor determining the final number of points and preventing damageinfliction after the end for a “late hit”. Also, during a match, it ispossible for a contestant to violate the rules of the game to the extentthat a disqualification occurs. In an event involving more than tworobots 116, disqualification generally involves stopping the infringingrobot 116.

With regard to the use of commercial equipment, since the radio controlequipment is always on, early starts may occur, which results inrestarting the event and using additional time. An uncontrolled stoppageof the event creates an issue as noise within an arena may beoverwhelming for the contestants, thereby requiring event coordinatorsto use hand signals to identify event stops, and a proper stoppage maynot occur. With regard to using custom control equipment, because thecontrol system is completely turned off to avoid early movement, timelystartup for all of the robots 116 may not occur and a restart is needed.Another possible outcome of the startup for one of the robots notoccurring is that the organizers and/or judges do not notice thesituation, thereby creating a disadvantage for the robot(s) that did notproperly start. This outcome commonly results in a contestant requestingre-matches, team dissatisfaction, and significant organizationdifficulties. Stopping the event involves turning the system power off.Although the system may be powered off, the robots 116 are activelytrying to receive signals and may cause the robots 116 to lurch or movedue to radio frequency noise and/or adjacent channel communication,which tends to change the position of scoring objects.

By comparison, the instant control system provides for communication tobe present before, during, and after an event. The competitionorganizers may control the events electronically or electrically so asto ensure that each robot starts and stops at substantially the sametime. Also, disabling an individual robot 116 a, for example, may easilybe accomplished using the instant control system. To start a match orevent, an enable signal may be issued to each of the arena controllers110. The enable signal is communicated to the operator interfaces 114and then to the robot controllers 118. Outputs of the robot controllers118 are unlocked and the robots receive full control. During operation,a disable signal to a particular arena controller 110 a may be utilizedto disable the robot for a rule infringement or dangerous situation. Tostop the match, a disable signal may be issued to each of the arenacontrollers 110, which is ultimately communicated to the robots 116 toprohibit movement by locking or turning off the outputs of the robotcontrollers 118. If communication is lost during the event due to a lowbattery condition on the robot 116 a, the low battery condition may beindicated by the robot controller 118 a and operator interface 114 a toidentify that the communication problem was the fault of the contestantand not outside the control of the contestant, such as a jamming signal.

At step 212, the robots are unloaded from the field. With regard to theuse of commercial equipment, since the radio control equipment is alwayson and in control of the robot, and since removing heavy robots requiresmultiple contestants to be on the field 102 along with the robots, thesituation may be dangerous. With regard to using custom controlequipment, although the system may be powered off, the robots 116 areactively trying to receive signals and may cause the robots 116 to lurchor move due to radio frequency noise and/or adjacent channelcommunication, which may be dangerous to contestants unloading robotsfrom the field 102. By comparison, the instant control system allowsunloading to be performed manually with robots disabled, orsemi-automatically using either radio or tether communication.

At step 214, a determination is made as to whether more contestants areto compete. If yes, then the field is loaded at step 208 and the nextevent takes place. Otherwise, the robot competition ends at step 216.

FIG. 3 is an exemplary block diagram of the instant control system 300for conducting a robot competition. The control system 300 includes thearena controller 110 a, operator 114 a, operator radio 115 a, robotcontroller 118 a, and robot radio 119 a.

The arena controller 110 a is positioned at the player station 106 a andincludes a processor 302 coupled to a memory 304. A channel selector306, such as a series of dip switches, is further coupled to theprocessor 302, and is utilized by the organizer of the robot competitionto select a frequency channel for the contestant utilizing the arenacontroller 110 a. Alternatively, the channel selector 306 may be amemory device that is loaded via data input, possibly from the fieldcontroller. Further yet, in the case of using TDMA communication, thechannel selector 306 may be used to set a time slot, and in the case ofusing CDMA, the channel selector may be used to set a code. An inputport to the arena controller 110 a may include an enable/disable signalport to receive an enable/disable signal 308. An output port to thearena controller 110 a may include a status indication port 310 tooutput status indicators. Input/output ports may include a remote radioport 312 that communicates with a remote radio (not shown). Multipleremote radios may be collocated or optimally placed to provide optimalcommunication within an arena between the operator interfaces 114and therobots 116 a. An operator radio 115 a may be disabled via the arenacontroller 110 a during communication to the robot 116 a using theremote radio. An operator interface port 314 of the arena controller 110a receives data from the operator interface 114 a to communicate to therobot 116 a from the remote radio. It should be understood that antennascoupled to the remote radios may be collocated and provide the samefunctionality of collocating the remote radios. While multiple arenacontrollers 110 have been designated to be used around the arena 100,one or more arena controllers having input ports for multiple operatorinterfaces 114 could be utilized to reduce the number of arenacontrollers 110.

In operation, the arena controller 110 a is utilized to assist the fieldcontroller 108 in managing the robot competition. A software program maybe stored in the memory 304 and executed by the processor 302. The fieldcontroller 108 may issue an enable/disable signal to the processor 302of the arena controller 110 a to enable and disable the operation, notcommunication, of the robot 116 a. The processor 302 is also operable toprovide a status indicator to be used to notify the field controller 108directly or simply turn on and off a light to indicate to theorganizers, contestants, and audience of the robot competition that thecontestant has full and proper communication with the robot 116 a. Theprocessor 302 also reads the channel selector 306, which is generallyselected by the organizers, and utilized for data discriminationpurposes by the robot 116 a. Further, configuration bits established bythe organizers may be read to determine input/output logic.

The operator interface 114 a, utilized by the contestant to control andmonitor the robot 116 a, may be coupled to the arena controller 110 aduring an event of the robot competition. The operator interface 114 aincludes a processor 316 coupled to a memory 318, an address selector319, and a display 320. The display 320 may include LEDs and LCDs toindicate information to the contestant. Alternatively, the display 320may be external from the operator interface 114 a. The operatorinterface 114 a further includes a pilot control input port 321 and apilot feedback output port 322. A pilot control device (not shown), suchas a joystick, may be utilized to control the robot 116 a via theoperator interface 114 a. The pilot feedback output port 322 may becoupled to an external display, such as a computer monitor. Twoinput/output ports, an arena controller port 324 and a radio port 326are used for communicating between the arena controller 110 a andoperator radio 115 a, respectively.

In operation, power may be provided from the arena controller 110 a tothe operator interface 114 a. By providing power from the arenacontroller 110 a to the operator interface 114 a, connection between thetwo devices may be ensured, and the frequency channel of the operatorinterface 114 a may be controlled. Additionally, if the operatorinterface 114 a were allowed to power up independent of the arenacontroller 110 a, the operator interface 114 a would default to anon-competition channel. Communication between the arena controller 110a and the operator interface 114 a may be used to authorize access torestricted competition channels and check the status of the link betweenthe robot controller 118 a and the operator interface 114 a. Theenable/disable signal and autonomous mode commands may be communicatedbetween the arena controller and the operator interface 114 a via datapackets or other data transmission technique. The address selector 319may be read by the processor and communicated to the. robot controller118 a to identify the operator interface 114 a as part of datadiscrimination.

The operator interface 114 a receives operational data, which may beanalog or digital, via the pilot controls input port 321 to control therobot 116 a. The processor 316 communicates the operational data via theoperator radio 115 a to control the robot 116 a. Feedback data from therobot 116 a may be received via the radio port 326 and processed by theprocessor 316. The pilot feedback output port 322 may be RS-232 standardto provide the feedback data for display on a computer or the display320. During a competition, the operator interface 114 a is connected toand communicates data with the arena controller 110 a to ensure that theoperator interface 114 a communicates with the proper robot 116 a, forexample.

The operator radio 115 a may be full duplex and includes a modem 328 anda processor 330 with associated memory (not shown). Alternatively, theoperator radio 115 a may be half duplex. An antenna 332 may be coupledto the radio 115 a. The robot radio 119 a includes substantially thesame hardware components as the robot radio 119 a, including: an antenna334, modem 336, and processor 340.

In operation, the operator radio is utilized to communicationinformation between the operator interface 114 a and the robotcontroller 118 a. The radio processor 330 of the operator radio 115 amay be electronically programmable or selectable by the processor 316 ofthe operator interface 114 a to support scanning. In one embodiment, alow power (e.g., less than approximately 0.25 watts) at a frequency bandof approximately 900 MHz. The low power is used to minimize transmissiondistance to less than approximately 500 feet (i.e., short rangecommunication), and to reduce the ability for other transmitters tocause interference onto other frequency channels. An RS-422 data link asunderstood in the art may be used between the radio modem 328 and theradio controller 330. Alternatively, a different or non-standard datalink may be utilized.

The data stream between the operator radio 115 a and the robot radio 119a includes pilot controls and control system data on the downlink (i.e.,from the operator radio 115 a to the robot radio 119 a) for controllingthe robot 116 a, and sensor feedback and control system data on theuplink. The data stream may be communicated using data packets asunderstood in the art. The data stream may be communicated using timedivision multiplexing (TDM) and code division multiplexing (CDM), forexample. Control system data may include team number, mode (i.e.,enable, disable, or autonomous), channel number, packet number, andchecksum.

The robot controller 118 a may include a master processor 342 andassociated memory 344, a user processor 346 and associated memory 348,an output processor 350 and associated memory 352, and an addressselector 354. The master processor 342 may be coupled to the user 346and output 350 processors. The user processor 346 may further be coupledto the output processor 350. The address selector 354 may be coupled tothe master processor 342. It should be understood that fewer or moreprocessors may be utilized and/or configured in different ways, however,using three processors 342, 346, and 350 provides a clear distinction offunction for the processors.

In operation, the radio controller 118 receives the downlink data fromthe robot radio 119 a. Team number may be used to synchronize the radiocontroller 118 a to the frequency channel of the operator interface 114a by scanning for a team number match. The team number may additionallybe used to reject data received from the wrong (i.e., non-corresponding)operator interface 114 a on the same or adjacent channel. As isunderstood in the art, a signal communicated on an adjacent channel mayoften be received and interpreted as being on the proper channel buthaving lower power. The mode may be used to define the current controlstate of the radio controller 118 a to enable or disable robot controloutputs from the output processor 350 to allow or prohibit movement ofthe robot 116 a. In one embodiment, the master processor 342 may receiveand interpret the mode and command the output processor to enable ordisable output drivers of the output processor 350. Additionally, themode may designate the robot controller 118 to operate the robot 116 ain an autonomous mode (i.e., non-contestant driven).

In the autonomous mode, the master processor 342 may receive downlinkdata, but ignores the downlink data as the robot 116 a is operating in aself-guided mode. Also, the master processor 342 does not send a disablesignal to the output processor 350 due to a time-out (i.e., missed datapackets) state caused by not receiving or ignoring the downlink data.The autonomous mode allows the user processor 346 to use sensor datareceived from a sensor input port 356 to control the robot 116 a.

The uplink data, including sensor feedback and control system data, maybe communicated in data packets and contain robot sensor data andlooped-back pilot control data. The system data may include team numberand frequency channel number. By communicating the uplink data to theoperator interface, data discrimination may occur and the contestant mayobtain positional and status data of the robot 116 a before and during amatch of the robot competition.

Software programs operating in the processors 342, 346, and 350 may bestored in the associated memories 344, 348, and 352, respectively, andoperate in serial or parallel to operate the robot 116 a. The masterprocessor 342 reads the address selector 354 to perform frequency scansand data verification. The frequency scan may scan through therestricted frequency channels dedicated for competition and be performedby the master processor 342 and/or the processor 340 of the robot radio119 a. It should be understood that the restricted radio channels may beinaccessible without the password being issued to the operator interface114 a by the arena controller 110 a. And, once the frequency scan setsthe robot radio 119 a on the correct channel, the robot radio 119 a maybe locked to that frequency channel by the processor 340 or masterprocessor 342 until the robot controller 118 a is powered down.

The user processor 346 may be utilized to communicate information to themaster processor 342 on initialization to configure the data packets tobe sent to the user processor 346. The user processor may receivecontrol data from the master processor 342, and allows the contestant toprogram the handling of robot control outputs and feedback data,although some data may be communicated directly back to and handled bythe master processor 342. The output processor 350 receives data fromthe master 342 and user 346 processors, and generates the robot controloutput to driving the actuators, such as motors and relays, on the robot116 a. If the robot 116 a is commanded to be disabled, then the outputprocessor 350 does not output the robot control output.

An alternative embodiment to disabling one or more robots 116 mayinclude a secondary communication path that allows disabling of robotmovement to ensure additional safety by having an alternative orredundancy path of communication. The secondary communication path mayutilize a secondary radio (not shown) coupled the arena 110 a, fieldcontroller 108, or emergency button that may be readily accessible tothe organizers, contestants, or audience. The secondary radio (notshown) may operate over the same or different frequency channels andcommunicate directly to the robot radios 119 using the same or differentbit streams. Alternatively, the secondary radio may communicate directlyto a secondary robot radio (not shown) that couples to the outputprocessor 350. The secondary radio may be a low or high range and/orpower radio to power down robots within approximately 500 feet or moreof the emergency button. A disable signal may be communicated asdiscussed herein.

FIG. 4 is a more detailed exemplary block diagram of the control system300 of FIG. 3. As shown, the pilot controls input port 321 of theoperator interface 114 a may include digital and analog input linesand/or buses for receiving data from operator control devices, such asjoysticks, switches, and potentiometers (pots), for example.Additionally, power may be delivered from the operator interface 114 ato the operator control devices. A competition port 402 may also beincluded with the operator interface 114 a to allow the organizer of therobot competition to have certain competition functions, such asaccessing the restricted frequencies used for competition, turn on andoff power, and enable/disable control of the robot 116 a. A powerconverter 404 may be utilized to convert 115 VAC from a wall to a DCvoltage. The pilot feedback port 322 may communicate sensor data fromthe robot 116 a to an auxiliary dashboard or display 406. The operatorinterface 114 a may communicate to the robot controller 118 a via theoperator 115 a and robot 119 a radios. Alternatively, the operatorinterface 114 a may communicate with the robot controller 118 a via atether using the RS-232 interface standard.

The robot controller 118 a may be coupled to a battery 408 to providepower that may be converted to digital and analog voltages by aconverter (not shown) within or external from the robot controller 118a. The robot controller 118 a may output pulse width modulation signalsand digital output signals (i.e., robot control output) to poweramplifiers 410 to drive a big motor and relay modules 414 to drivesmaller motors, pumps, solenoids, and valves. Feedback signals fromsensors, pots, and switches may be received by the robot controller 118a in analog or digital form. Analog-to-digital (A/D) converters may beutilized to convert the analog feedback signals so that the masterprocessor 342 of the robot controller 118 a may communicate theinformation in packets back to the operator interface 114 a.

FIG. 5 is an exemplary hardware schematic of the operator interface 114a showing exemplary input and output ports. Ports 1-4 are provided toallow a contestant to utilize multiple control devices to operate therobot. Additionally, a number of selectors, such as user channel andaddress (i.e., team number) selector 319, are shown as being accessibleto the contestant. Alternatively, the selectors may be softwareswitches. Other selectors and ports should be recognized by thoseskilled in the art. On the face of the operator interface 114 a, adisplay containing LEDs and seven-segment LEDs, or an LCD, may beprovided to display the contestant information. The display 320 isdiscussed further with regard to FIG. 10A.

FIG. 10A is an exemplary display of the operator interface 110 a. Asshown, there are three groups of LEDs, including: operator interface1000, robot controller 1002, and robot feedback 1004 groups. Theoperator interface group 1000 provides a status of hardware and/orcommunication operation of the operator interface 110 a. The robotcontroller group 1002 provides a status of power and communicationoperation of the robot controller 118 a. The robot feedback group 1004provides software controlled status of sensor and actuator devices onthe robot 116 a. A seven-segment LED display 1006 may be included todisplay the frequency channel on which the operator interface 110 a iscurrently communicating, and to display other relevant numeric data.

FIG. 6 is an exemplary mechanical schematic of the robot controller 118a providing selectors and communication ports, including communicationports for a radio and tether input, as previously discussed andunderstood in the art. Additionally, a display including indicators,such as LED s, may be provided on the robot controller 118 a, to providethe contestant an indication as to the status and operation of the robotcontroller 118 a. The display of the robot controller 118 a is discussedfurther with regard to FIG. 110B.

FIG. 110B is an exemplary display of the robot controller 118 a. Thedisplay includes three groups, including controller status 1008,controller alerts 1010, and fuse faults 1012 groups. The controllerstatus group 1008 indicates power, communication, and software executionof the robot controller 118 a. The controller alerts group 1010 notifiesthe contestant as to power, communication, and software execution of therobot controller 118 a during operation of the robot 116 a. The fusefaults group 1012 provides an indication as to fuses that fail duringoperation of the robot 116 a. It should be understood that the itemsdisplayed are exemplary and may be different based on desirability bythe developer, operator, and/or contestants of the robot competition forboth the operator interface 110 a and the robot controller 118 a.

FIG. 7 is an exemplary interaction diagram 700 describing operations andcommunications between operator and robot components for startup of thecontrol system using the operator radio 115 a. The process starts atstep(s) 702 a and 702 b as both the operator interface 114 a and robotcontroller 118 a are started up independently.

With regard to the operator interface 114 a, the team number is read atstep 704 and displayed at step 706. At step 708, the competition port isread to determine whether the operator interface 114 a is being utilizedin a robot competition setting. The frequency channel selector may thenbe read, if necessary, at step 710. The operator interface 114 acommands the operator radio 115 a, or the processor 330 therein, to thefrequency channel, and a confirmation may be communicated back to theoperator interface 114 a. Data may now be transmitted by the operatorradio 115 a thereafter.

With regard to the robot controller, the team number is read at step716. At step 718, the robot controller 118 a determines whether controlis to be performed via a tether connection. The robot controller 118 awaits until a tether or radio connection is made. The master processor342 performs a handshake with the user processor to get data types to beused for data communication at step 722. At step 724, the robotcontroller 118 a sets the robot radio 119 a to the last frequencychannel used and a confirmation is communicated back to the robotcontroller at step 726. The master processor 342 waits for data to bereceived from the robot radio 119 a at step 728.

At step 730, data continues to be communicated from the operatorinterface 114 a to the operator radio 115 a. The data may include thepilot controls and control system data, and may be communicated from theoperator radio 115 a to the robot radio 119 a. The robot radio 119 acommunicates the data to the robot controller 118 a at step 734. Thedata is received at step 736 by the master processor 342, and averification process to determine whether the correct team number andfrequency channel were received at step 738. The team number is deemedto be correct if the team number received from the operator interface114 a matches the team number of the robot controller 118 a. Thefrequency channel number is deemed to be correct if the frequencychannel number received from the operator interface 114 a matches thefrequency channel that the robot radio 119 a resides. If the team numberis not correct, then the data is discarded and the robot controller maywait for data again at step 728.

If the frequency channel is not correct, the robot controller 118 a setsthe robot radio 119 a to a next frequency channel at step 740. The robotradio 119 a confirms the channel selection to the robot controller 118 aat step 742. The frequency channel is scanned or swept at step 744 untilthe frequency channel of the robot radio 119 a matches the frequencychannel received from the operator interface 114 a. Once the frequencychannel of the robot radio 119 a matches the frequency channel receivedfrom the operator interface 114 a, the frequency channel of the robotradio 119 a is locked at step 746 and confirmed at step 747. To avoidpossible safety problems, the frequency channel of the robot radio 119 aremains locked until the robot controller 118 a is powered off. At step748, radio transmission of the robot radio 119 a is enabled andconfirmed at step 749. At step 750,the robot controller 118 a beginsnormal operation.

At step 752, feedback and control system data is communicated from therobot controller 118 a to the robot radio 119 a. The feedback andcontrol system data is thereafter communicated to the operator radio 115a and ultimately to the operator interface 114 a at step 756. Thefrequency channel may be displayed on the operator interface 114 a atstep 758. Normal operation of the operator interface 114 a may begin atstep 760. It should be understood that startup of the control systemusing the operator radio 115 a may be performed in a different mannerthan shown in FIG. 7, but that the functionality may achieve similarresults.

FIG. 8 is an exemplary interaction diagram 800 describing operations andcommunications between operator and robot components for tether startupof the control system using the operator radio 115 a. The process startsat step(s) 802 a and 802 b as both the operator interface 114 a androbot controller 118 a are started up independently.

With regard to the operator interface 114 a, the team number is read atstep 804 and displayed at step 806. At step 808, the competition port isread to determine whether the operator interface 114 a is being utilizedin a robot competition setting. The frequency channel selector may thenbe read, if necessary, at step 810. The operator interface 114 a detectsa tether connection at step 812. Once the tether connection is detected,the operator interface 114 a starts sending data and communicates viathe tether connection and does not communicate via the operator radio115 a.

With regard to the robot controller, the team number is read at step814. At step 816, the robot controller 118 a determines whether controlis to be performed via a tether connection. The robot controller 118 amay also check for a connection to the robot radio 119 a. The robotcontroller 118 a waits until a tether or radio connection is made atstep 820. At step 822, the master processor 342 performs a handshakewith the user processor to get data types to be used for datacommunication.

At step 824, the operator interface communicates pilot controls andcontrol system data via the tether, which may be a wire cable or fiberoptic line, for example. The robot controller receives the data at step826 and verifies the correct team number and channel at step 828. If itis determined that the robot controller is not set to the correctchannel, the next channel is selected at step 830. The robot controller118 a repeats the channel verification process at step 832 until thechannel of the robot controller 118 a matches the frequency channelnumber communicated by the operator interface 114 a.

At step 834, after the frequency channel of the robot controller 118 amatches the frequency channel of the operator interface, the frequencychannel of the robot controller 118 a is locked. By locking thefrequency channel of the robot controller 118 a until the robotcontroller 118 a is powered down, safety is further increased. At step836, the robot controller 118 a begins normal operation.

At step 838, the robot controller 118 a communicates feedback andcontrol system data via the tether connection to the operator interface114 a. At step 840, the operator interface 114 a waits until the correctteam number and frequency channel is received from the robot controller118 a. The frequency channel is displayed on the display 320 of theoperator interface 114 a or external display at step 842. The operatorinterface 114 a begins normal operation at step 844. It should beunderstood that startup of the control system using the tether may beperformed in a different manner than shown in FIG. 8, but that thefunctionality may achieve similar results.

FIG. 9 is an exemplary interaction diagram of the control system of FIG.4 showing a flow of operations for conducting normal operation of thecontrol system. At step(s) 902 a and 902 b, normal operation of theoperator interface 114 a and robot controller 118 a commences. As shownthe robot controller 118 a has been expanded to include the threeprocessors, including the master processor 342, user processor 346, andoutput processor 350. It should be understood that the robot controller118 a could include one processor to perform the functions of the threeprocessors, but separating the functions onto the different processorreduces the load for each processor. Alternatively, rather than using aprocessor for the output processor 350, for example, a digital logiccircuit or other device may be utilized for performing the functions ofthe output processor 350.

At step 902,the processor 316 of the operator interface 114 a reads thepilot controls input port 321, which may include multiple input ports asshown in FIG. 5 to read multiple control devices, such as joysticks andswitches. At step 904, pilot controls and control system data arecommunicated to the operator radio 115 a, which further communicates thepilot controls and control system data to the robot radio 119 a at step906. The robot radio 119 a thereafter communicates the pilot controlsand control system data to the master processor 342 at step 908.

At step 910, the master processor 342 receives the data. The masterprocessor may perform a data integrity test (not shown) using thecontrol data, such as checksum, channel, and team number, beforeutilizing the received data for controlling the robot 116 a. If it isdetermined that the data is not valid for any reason, the robot 116 amay utilize the previously valid data for up to five data receptions,for example. After the five data receptions, the robot 116 a may bedisabled by turning off control output from the output processor 350and/or robot power, for example. The analog inputs from sensors locatedon the robot 110 a are read by the master processor at step 912. At step914, the digital inputs from sensors located on the robot 110 a are readby the master processor 342. Information, including pilot controls andcontrol system data, analog data, and digital data, may be communicatedover a serial bus to the user processor 346 at step 916. At step 918,the serial data is read by the user processor. Using a serial busprovides the contestant the ability to replace the user processor with anew or different processor and be confident that the new or differentprocessor can operate in the robot controller without major rework, suchas rewiring or altering of signal timing. The data received via theserial bus is processed at step 920. The data may be utilized to controlthe operation and/or movement of the robot 110 a.

At step 922, the user processor 346 communicates feedback and controlsystems data to the master processor 342. The feedback and controlsystems data may be utilized by the master processor to further controlthe robot 110 a. At step 924, the user processor may communicate dataacross another serial bus to the output processor 350. The data, whichmay include information to drive actuator devices, such as motors andswitches and/or lights, may be received by the output processor 350 atstep 926. Again, the use of the serial bus allows the contestant toupgrade the robot controller 118 a by simply changing the outputprocessor 350 that utilizes a serial bus. At step 928, pulse widthmodulation (PWM) signals that are used to drive large motors efficientlymay be output from the output processor 350 to the actuator devices. Atstep 930, output signals to smaller actuators, such as small motors,solenoids, and lights, may be output from the output processor 350.

At step 932, the master processor 342 of the robot controller 118 acommunicates feedback and control systems data 932 to the robot radio119 a, which further communicates the data to the operator radio at step934. At step 936, the operator radio 115 a communicates the feedback andcontrol systems data to the processor 316 of the operator interface 114a. The data is received by the processor 316 of the operator interfaceat step 938, and displays are updated at step 940. The displays mayinclude the display 320 of the operator interface or an external displaycommunicated via the pilot feedback port 322 at step 942. The process isrepeated at step 944 until, the unit is shut down or communication islost, for example. It should be understood that normal operation of thecontrol system may be performed in a different manner than shown in FIG.9, but that the functionality may achieve similar results.

FIGS. 11A and 11B show exemplary downlink 1100 a and uplink 1100 b datastreams, respectively. Both of the data streams 1100 a and 1100 binclude both control and data information, and may be communicated usingdata packets. As understood in the art, the downlink data stream 1100 acommunicates data from the operator interface 115 a to the robotcontroller 118 a, and the uplink data stream 1100 b communicates datafrom the robot controller 118 a to the operator interface 115 a .

The downlink data stream 1100 a includes control 1102 and pilot 1104data, which may include analog and digital data, to controlfunctionality or operability and movement of the robot 116 a. Assuggested, the pilot data 1104 includes data generated by a contestantusing a control device, such as a joystick, to control the robot 116 a.The uplink data stream 1100 b includes control 1106 and sensor 1108data, which may include analog and digital data, to operate as telemetrydata for the contestant. The sensor data 1108 data may be utilized fordisplay purposes. TABLES 1 and 2 provide exemplary downlink and uplink,respectively, data stream information.

As shown, both the downlink and uplink data packets utilize ahexadecimal number, 0xff, 0xff, which is 255 in base ten, in the firsttwo bytes to indicate a start of the data packet. The value of the startof the data packet may alternatively be another value. The other bytes,therefore, are to remain between 0 and 254 so that the processors do notconsider a non-start byte the start of a data packet. The data includedin the data packets are not arranged in any particular order, such aspassing control data first and pilot data second.

The control data includes CTRL_A, CTRL_B, CTRL_C, PACKET NUMBER,CHECKSUM_A, and CHECKSUM_B. The CTRL_A data includes four mode bits,including an enable/disable bit and autonomous mode bit, and four teamnumber bits. The CTRL_B data includes eight bits of additional teamnumber. The CTRL_C data includes two mode bits and six channel numberbits. The packet number may indicate a particular packet for referencepurposes. The CHECKSUM_A and CHECKSUM_B data are BCH style checksums asunderstood in the art. It should be understood that the control data maybe alternatively organized and a different number of bits may be used tocommunicate the information. Furthermore, other control information maybe communicated on the downlink and uplink data packets for systemcontrol purposes.

The pilot data in the downlink packet includes analog and digital data.Both the analog and digital data is communicated in a digital format.The PWM data is pulse width modulation data that is used to controlmotors, for example. Digital data may be used to control switches,relays, and lights, for example. It should be understood thatalternative pilot data may be communicated on the downlink data packet.The sensor data in the uplink packet includes analog and digital datafor indicating operation and status of the robot and electromechanicaldevices coupled thereto. The particular data communicated on the uplinkmay be selectively applied by the contestant. It should be furtherunderstood that the downlink and uplink data may include more or fewernumber of bytes of data.

The robot controller 118 a and operator interface 114have processors andassociated software operable to receive and communicate the uplink anddownlink data as understood in the art. Additionally, the robotcontroller 118 a and operator interface 114 may include hardware orsoftware for parsing and forming the uplink and downlink data packets asunderstood in the art.

TABLE 1 DOWNLINK DATA PACKET BYTE DATA BYTE DATA 1-2 0xff, 0xff (startof packet) 15 PWM7 3 PWM1 16 CHECKSUM_ A 4 SWITCHES_A 17 PWM8 5 PWM2 18CHECKSUM_ B 6 SWITCHES_ B 19 PWM9 7 PWM3 20 PWM10 8 CTRL_ A 21 PWM11 9PWM4 22 PWM12 10 CTRL_ B 23 PWM13 11 PWM5 24 PWM14 12 CTRL_ C 25 PWM1513 PWM6 26 PWM16 14 PACKET NUMBER

TABLE 2 UPLINK DATA PACKET BYTE DATA BYTE DATA 1-2 0xff, 0xff (start ofpacket) 8 CTRL_ A 3 ANALOG1 9 ANALOG4 4 SWITCHES_ A 10 CTRL_ B 5 ANALOG211 ANALOG5 6 SWITCHES_ B 12 CTRL_ C 7 ANALOG3 13 ANALOG6

FIG. 12 is an exemplary flow diagram 1200 describing a method forconducting the petition of FIG. 1. The process starts at step 1202. Atstep 1204, sets of operator interfaces and radios being substantiallythe same are issued to contestants of the robot competition. Theissuance may be provided for cost or no cost. At step 1206, thecontestants to participate in the robot competition are entered. Theorganizers coordinate individual matches he robot competition at step1208. The coordination may include assigning frequency channels,starting and stopping the matches, supervising point scoring for thecontestants, and ensuring safety of the robots both on and off the fieldof the arena 100. The process ends at step 1210.

Although the robot control system 300 herein described is directed tobeing utilized for a robot competition, the principles of the presentinvention may be utilized for non-robot competition applications. Suchnon-robot competition applications may include educational uses,military applications, and general hobby robot applications. Otherpotential applications may include transportation vehicles, heavyequipment, amusement park rides, and those vehicles desiring remotesafety controls, for example. Additionally, while the robot controlsystem 300 generally includes using low power radios for indoor use,applications that are performed outdoors generally desire longer ranges.To accommodate the longer ranges, radio power may be increased tocommunicate over longer distances.

The previous description is of a preferred embodiment for implementingthe invention, and the scope of the invention should not necessarily belimited by this description. The scope of the present invention isinstead defined by the following claims.

We claim:
 1. A system for operating robots in a robot competition, saidsystem comprising: a plurality of operator interfaces, each operatorinterface being operable to control movement of a respective robot; afirst plurality of radios, each radio being in communication with arespective operator interface, and having a low power RF output signal;a plurality of robots; a plurality of robot controllers, each robotcontroller coupled to a respective robot; and a second plurality ofradios, each second radio coupled to a respective robot and incommunication with a respective robot controller and first radio, andhaving a low power RF output signal while communicating with therespective first radios.
 2. The system according to claim 1, wherein thelow power RF output signal is a maximum of approximately 0.25 watts. 3.The system according to claim 1, wherein said first plurality of radioshave a maximum communication range of approximately 500 feet.
 4. Thesystem according to claim 1, wherein said first plurality of radios aresubstantially the same.
 5. The system according to claim 1, wherein saidfirst and second radios operate in full duplex.
 6. The system accordingto claim 1, wherein said first and second radios communicate on anRS-422 communication standard.
 7. A system for operating robots in arobot competition, said system comprising: a plurality of operatorinterfaces, each operator interface being operable to control movementof a respective robot; a first plurality of radios, each radio being incommunication with a respective operator interface, and having a shortcommunication range; a plurality of robots; a plurality of robotcontrollers, each robot controller coupled to a respective robot; and asecond plurality of radios, each second radio coupled to a respectiverobot and in communication with a respective robot controller and firstradio, and having a short communication range.
 8. The system accordingto claim 7, wherein said first radios have low power RF output signal ofa maximum of approximately 0.25 watts.
 9. The system according to claim7, wherein the short communication range is a maximum of approximately500 feet.
 10. The system according to claim 7, wherein said firstplurality of radios are substantially the same.
 11. The system accordingto claim 7, wherein said first and second radios operate in full duplex.12. The system according to claim 7, wherein said first and secondradios communicate on an RS-422 communication standard.
 13. A system forcontrolling a robot competition having a plurality of robots engagedtherein, said system comprising: at least one arena controller operableto provide control of the robots; a plurality of operator interfacescoupled to said at least one arena controller; and a plurality ofoperator radios being in one-to-one correspondence with said pluralityof operator interfaces and coupled thereto.
 14. The system according toclaim 13, wherein each of said plurality of operator radios operate on aseparate channel as commanded by a corresponding arena controller. 15.The system according to claim 14, wherein said at least one arenacontroller further provides control of said operator interfaces.
 16. Thesystem according to claim 13, wherein said operator radios are capableof communicating on channels restricted for tournament use.
 17. Thesystem according to claim 13, wherein the control includes at least oneof the following: enabling and disabling of the robots, and allocatingof a channel.
 18. The system according to claim 13, further comprising aplurality of robot controllers operable to control a correspondingrobot, each robot controller coupled to a robot radio to communicatewith a corresponding operator radio.
 19. The system according to claim18, wherein the robot controllers include a sweep means for sweeping theoperator frequencies of the robot radios.
 20. The system according toclaim 13, further comprising a field controller coupled to said at leastone arena controller.
 21. The system according to claim 20, wherein saidfield controller is integrated with an arena controller.
 22. The systemaccording to claim 20, wherein said field controller allocates channelson which said operator radios communicate.
 23. The system according toclaim 20, wherein said field controller enables and disables said atleast one arena controller.
 24. A method for controlling a robotcompetition within an arena having a plurality of robots engaged incompetition therein, said method comprising: installing at least onedevice for engagement by contestants of the robot competition;allocating, by the at least one device, a plurality of channels forcommunication of signals to the robots during the robot competition;assigning a unique channel to each contestant engaging the at least onedevice; and conducting the robot competition with the engagedcontestants.
 25. The method according to claim 24, wherein the at leastone device is an arena controller.
 26. The method according to claim 24,wherein control of the robot is selectively enabled and disabled via theat least one device.
 27. The method according to claim 24, wherein saidassigning includes: sweeping the plurality of channels by a robot;identifying the control signal; and locking to the unique channel. 28.The method according to claim 24, wherein the plurality of channels arerestricted for tournament use.
 29. The method according to claim 28,wherein a password is utilized to provide access to the restrictedchannels.
 30. A system for providing dual-mode communication between anoperator and a robot, said system comprising: at least one operatorinterface having at least two communication ports, a first operatorinterface operable by the operator for controlling movement of therobot; a first radio, coupled to a first communication port of anoperator interface, to communicate data on a channel; a second radio,mechanically coupled to the robot, for communicating with said firstradio; a robot controller mechanically coupled to the robot, said robotcontroller having at least two communication ports for receiving thedata to control the robot, said second radio being coupled to a firstcommunication port of said robot controller, a second communication portof said robot controller being operable to receive the data from saidoperator interface via a tether connection.
 31. The system according toclaim 30, wherein transmit power of at least one of said first andsecond radios is disabled during the tether connection.
 32. The systemaccording to claim 30, wherein the cable is conductive or optical. 33.The system according to claim 30, wherein the tether connection includescoupling a tether cable between a second communication port of theoperator interface and the second communication port of said robotcontroller.
 34. A method for determining a channel of communicationbetween an operator interface and a remote control device, the operatorinterface and remote control device having associated device numbers,said method comprising: assigning the channel to the operator interface;transmitting a signal on a first channel, the signal including a devicenumber, channel number, and checksum; selecting, by the remote controldevice, a second channel to receive the signal; receiving the signalincluding the device number, channel number, and checksum; verifying thechecksum to confirm integrity of the signal; determining if the secondchannel and the channel number match; and determining if the transmitteddevice number corresponds to the device number of the remote controldevice.
 35. The method according to claim 34, further comprising lockingthe channel of the remote control device.
 36. The method according toclaim 34, wherein the remote control device is a robot.
 37. The methodaccording to claim 34, wherein the determining of the channel occursduring a robot competition.
 38. The method according to claim 34,wherein each of the device number, channel number, and checksum aretransmitted in a single data packet.
 39. The method according to claim34, further comprising selecting a different channel if the secondchannel and channel number do not match.
 40. A method for conducting arobot competition, said method comprising: issuing to contestants of therobot competition a plurality of radios being low range, commerciallyavailable, and substantially the same, the radios being operable receivedata to control movement of respective robots; entering the contestantsto participate in the robot competition; and coordinating individualmatches during the robot competition.
 41. The method according to claim40, further issuing operator interfaces.
 42. The method according toclaim 40, further issuing robot controllers.
 43. The method according toclaim 40, wherein each of the radios has a maximum radio frequency powerof 0.25 watts.
 44. The method according to claim 40, wherein each of theradios has a maximum communication of approximately 500 feet.
 45. Themethod according to claim 40, wherein said issuing includes selling theradios to contestants of the robot competition.
 46. The method accordingto claim 40, wherein said entering includes registering contestantsprior to participating in the robot competition.
 47. The methodaccording to claim 40, wherein said coordinating includes regulatingoperation of the sets of operator interfaces and radios.
 48. The methodaccording to claim 47, wherein the regulating includes assigning aunique operating channel to each radio.
 49. The method according toclaim 47, wherein the regulating includes starting and stopping theindividual matches substantially simultaneously.
 50. A method forconducting a robot competition, said method comprising: issuing tocontestants of the robot competition a plurality of radios and operatorinterfaces, the radios being commercially available, and substantiallythe same, the radios being operable to receive data to control movementof respective robots; entering the contestants to participate in therobot competition; and coordinating individual matches during the robotcompetition.
 51. The method according to claim 50, further issuing robotcontrollers.
 52. The method according to claim 50, wherein each of theradios has a maximum radio frequency power of 0.25 watts.
 53. The methodaccording to claim 50, wherein each of the radios has a maximumcommunication of approximately 500 feet.
 54. The method according toclaim 50, wherein said issuing includes selling the radios tocontestants of the robot competition.
 55. The method according to claim50, wherein said entering includes registering contestants prior toparticipating in the robot competition.
 56. The method according toclaim 50, wherein said coordinating includes regulating operation of thesets of operator interfaces and radios.
 57. The method according toclaim 56, wherein the regulating includes assigning a unique operatingchannel to each radio.
 58. The method according to claim 56, wherein theregulating includes starting and stopping the individual matchessubstantially simultaneously.